West Broward Cities Ponder Insurance Pool

They call themselves The Bunch, and they don`t need to read the newspapers to know that cities are getting socked with higher and higher insurance premiums.

They are, after all, responsible for overseeing the insurance needs of the cities for which they work. As finance directors, risk managers and the like, members of The Bunch are paid to make sure their respective cities -- the 10 member cities of the Northwest Council of Mayors -- have the necessary insurance coverage at the best price.

``We spend a bundle -- a bundle,`` Margate Finance Director Sam Moschella said of the insurance premiums paid by cities. ``In just the category of general liability, just take three cities: Margate, Plantation and Lauderhill. It`s $850,000 a year.``

So it`s not surprising that during their informal get togethers, The Bunch got to talking about one approach -- pooling money.

``Buying power and spreading of the risk, that`s the concept,`` said Moschella. By banding together, pooling money and combining expertise, cities could provide part of their own insurance protection.

By self-insuring, the cities could save money that an insurance company keeps as profit and spends toward operating costs and agent fees, Moschella said. The profit, operating costs and agent fees amount to about 41 cents on every dollar, according to a recent study by New York state.

Cities could pool money where they have shared insurance needs, such as general liability and automobiles, Moschella said.

``This is not a unique concept,`` said Judy Deutsch, Tamarac risk manager. ``Dade County has been acting as insurer on workman`s compensation for most of the cities in the county.``

Moschella attended Monday`s meeting of the Northwest Council of Mayors to report on The Bunch`s interest in insurance pooling and to gauge the council`s interest.

``I`ve always contended you could save money by being self-insured,`` said Plantation Mayor Frank Veltri. ``The question I`ve never gotten an answer to is: Is the group large enough for a successful program?``

Moschella said he thinks the answer is yes. The council asked Moschella to report back in December.

Some members of The Bunch are planning to go to Lee County to investigate a pooling plan that`s being organized there, Deutsch said.